1
"Offside" isn't just a football term here.
Who is offside? It is these girls who love to watch football, or those in power with the unity of politics and religion.
Jafar Panahi did not give a clear answer,
But the "Offside" movie itself speaks for itself.
The film, which won the "Silver Bear Award" at the 2006 Berlin Film Festival,
Caused a lot of trouble for the director himself,
Movies were banned, and filming was banned.
The period when the strongman Ahmadinejad was in power was the most dreary period in Iranian society.
Panahi recounted how the film was created, saying,
He loved football since he was a child, but his interest turned to movies when he grew up.
In 2000, Iran competed for the "World Cup" tickets,
More than 5,000 women gathered outside the stadium, and the scene shocked him.
But they were told they couldn't come in to watch the game, even if they had tickets.
Women are not allowed to enter the game, starting after the 1979 revolution,
But there is no express provision in the law,
So, it's an unwritten constraint.
He said that once, he wanted to go to the training game of the Iranian team, and his daughter wanted to go too.
He told his daughter that you can't get in, so let's go with your mother,
If you don't let in, you go home with your mother.
Outside the football field, the daughter was told that she could not go in.
Daughter said Dad, you go first, I'll be there in a while.
When he came in and sat down, sure enough, his daughter also arrived.
At a glance, the daughter came in as a boy with a ticket.
In fact, there are a lot of girls who are just like that.
2
The six girls in the film are not as lucky as the others.
They were all taken by the military to the back door partition of the stadium.
They have very different personalities. Reflect the gradual change of Iranian society from one side.
Among them, there is a girl smoking a cigarette, dressed as a boy,
So much so that the soldiers didn't recognize her as a woman.
Others look like girls.
Some are docile, some are lively, and some are obsessed with football.
The last girl to be brought in, very special.
She was dressed in military uniform and handcuffed, cute and playful, with a look of indifference on her face.
Only by hearing the cheers in the arena can she concentrate.
In fact, several soldiers, like girls, love football.
So the soldier Ahmadi took up the task of interpreter,
He clawed at the back door and explained in a prudent manner.
This excited the girl inside the iron fence.
Only the captain doesn't care about football.
He wondered that these girls would rather risk jail time to watch such a boring football.
Don't blame him, he is an authentic farmer's son.
He cares about the family's small farm and mother who can't do heavy physical work, as well as cattle and sheep.
Therefore, his duty is to take good care of these girls and not let them run away.
Otherwise, it is possible to extend his service period without being able to take care of his home farm in advance.
3
Later, the girl Marshadia yelled to go to the toilet,
She cunningly escaped when Ahmadi guarded her.
In a football field of 100,000 people, finding someone is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
He returned unhappy.
The squad leader was frightened like an ant on a hot pan, not knowing what to do.
If this girl is not found, his good hopes of returning home sooner will be in vain.
Fortunately, at the end of halftime, Masadiah came back, surprising everyone.
She said to the team leader, for your cattle, I will come back.
These lovely girls, in order to watch football,
Don't hesitate to take the risk of dressing up as a man.
They wore Iranian flags on their faces and sang the Iranian national anthem.
They jumped and shouted the slogan of Iran's victory,
But it is not accepted by the authorities and society, which is a wonderful irony.
4
As the director said, as long as in a normal society,
Such absurdity can't happen.
Women are tired of living in this country.
Even on a hot day, they would wear a set of thickly veiled black clothes on the streets.
Such taboos and constraints are everywhere.
Finally, they were taken into a police car. Squad leader and soldier Ahmadi guard them.
They also bought water for them on the way. The final three minutes of extra time.
The squad leader stuck his head out the window and pressed down on the radio antenna, trying to get them to hear the results.
The result, of course, was that Iran beat Bahrain 1-0.
Successfully entered the 2006 Germany "World Cup" football match.
The girls and everyone outside the car were celebrating, and even the squad leader was moved by them.
Lighting the spinning fireworks together, shouting together.
But the destination of the police car is the Interpol.
They will all face criminal penalties.
This is the result of their love for football and Iran.
Who is offside?
But the director's compassion still gave the girls a happy ending.
They and the soldiers were pulled out of their cars by the jubilant crowd and lit fireworks together.
Where to go, who knows.
Perhaps, for these lovely girls, movies can really change something.
2014, 8, 15
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